Leon Carp
Leon Carp, Roseanne's boss and male best friend on Roseanne from Seasons 3–9. The part of Leon is played by veteran actor/comedian Martin Mull. About Leon Carp As Roseanne's boss and later co-worker; he starts out as her manager at the Rodbell's Luncheonette, where his obsession with pleasing the customers and by-the-book aproach to all rules and schedules quickly gets on her nerves. Leon, correspondingly, soon becomes irate over her sloppy nature and deliberate ignorance of almost everything he tells her to do. However, they quickly develop a gradual respect and friendship for one another. While he is conscientious, good-hearted, and well-intentioned, Roseanne and Leon have a habit of jokingly insulting each other and talk about their faults, such as when Leon stole Roseanne's tips when she was a waitress. Leon also later becomes tentative friends with Dan; the two seldom interact outside Dan's poker games, but there is nothing to make them hostile, as both of them are intimidated by Roseanne. When the restaurant is closed following Leon's promotion, he, Roseanne and Bonnie bid one another a (grudgingly) fond farewell. Leon's homosexuality is revealed early in the series, although he tries to closet himself when it is convenient; while Roseanne does not hold it against him, she sometimes blackmails revealing his relationships with his own male superiors to prevent him from firing her, or to make him ease up on certain rules. Dan is stunned when he learns Leon is gay, but like Roseanne does not hold it against him. Leon gets on well with Roseanne's conservative mother, Beverly (although he does not know she is also gay until the final season) but his political views are more moderate; nonetheless, he seems to prefer the right-wing, as evidenced by his obsession with etiquette and his approval of George Bush. After the restaurant closes, Roseanne resurfaces as the main co-owner of the Lunchbox; at the end of Season 5 Leon returns, having acquired a job as a health inspector and intending to destroy her business. However, she almost immediately discovers ''how and why ''he gained such a position when an elderly male executive walks in, prompting him to gloss over the flaws of the Lunchbox. Leon ultimately gains partial ownership of the Lunchbox when Bev sells him her share to get revenge on her daughters for outing her. However, his attempts to improve the diner and his control over it are again always thwarted by Roseanne. At one point he attempts to organize a coup against her with Jackie and Nancy, while she is stressed over problems with her relationship with D.J. Fortunately Dan, who initially thought she was paranoid about Leon, catches on; Roseanne enlists D.J. as an assistant at the Lunchbox in response, enabling her to torment Leon more easily. Leon later marries an attorney named Scott, who is a much more relaxed personality than he is; since Scott's presence softens Leon's stiff image, Roseanne becomes more tolerant of having him as a guest in her house. Eventually he gains ownership of the Lunchbox after Roseanne wins the lottery; she and Jackie turn over their shares to him and Nancy, and they part as friends once again. After coming to the Conner house to visit Darlene and David's baby in the final episode, Leon and Scott announce they are planning to adopt a three-year-old girl from Romania named Nadya--but are stopped by red tape because of their homosexuality. Although he is a popular character, there has been no mention of Leon or his whereabouts during the current revival era. Appearances Category:Recurring characters Category:Characters Category:LGBTQ